Foot operated Hand Brake -What a Stupid Idea......

[gadgetgricey]

Didn't do a collection thread for a few reasons, but had the pleasure of visiting HMC yesterday and driving back in his (now mine) CLK Kompressor.

Few things to try and fix , which I knew about but one thing is really bugging me which I cant really do anything about.

 

Why fit a foot operated handbrake on a manual.

 

Had a couple before on E38 Auto's and did not cause that much of an issue as probably just stuck it in P.

 

Hopefully I might begin to sort it out, but at the moment I cant get my feet in the right place and look like a learner when trying to do a hill start. 

Luckily was motorway the vast majority of the way home and average 37mpg which I thought was very impressive for a 2.3 Supercharged car.

 

 

[Cavcraft]

Not a great idea or design, but in an auto (especially one with a decent engine) being in 'drive' with one foot on the brakes usually works for short spells. 

[eddyramrod]

Left foot pulls the parking brake on in Huggy, the Yanks have used this system for decades.  Although I normally just put him in Park, I do occasionally use the pedal.  Engage Drive with the engine running and the brake self-releases.  How's that for 46 years ago!

[SiC]

Why fit a foot operated handbrake on a manual.

 

Or another way to look at it, why spec your new Mercedes with a manual?

 

Most Mercedes manual boxes aren't even very good! Maybe it's because they don't really want you ordering a manual so do anything to put your off doing so ...

[lesapandre]

My manual XM Citroen has a  foot operated brake...foot on - hand off - except unlike with a normal handbrake you can't feather it with the clutch by hand or hold the car on the brake on a hill etc...it is either ON or OFF. Its a bit of a pain in the butt.

[gadgetgricey]

I agree on an Auto its fine, even sort of makes sense. But currently causing me a world of pain.....

 

Never owned a Merc manual, but the 6 speed in this seems quite nice. Once I figured out it was lift for reverse.....

[HMC]

Agreed, I always found it was more economic than I was expecting. The biggest pain is a quick stop then hill start, like in traffic. Where normally a quick instinctive tug on the HANDbrake normally happens, instead it’s another thing for your left foot to deal with. Makes it all a bit clumsy.

[HMC]

The other option is to keep your foot on the brake then rapidly more straight over to the clutch to get the bite. Works but demands confidence, especially if the car behind is right up your arse....

[Six-cylinder]

I have a Mercedes 200TE and Citroen XM autos with foot parking brakes which are ok.

 

Cadillac is foot on and automatic release.

 

But my Citroen DS is a pain, come to a stop right foot on the brake left on the clutch, now take it out of gear (column change), move left foot to parking brake, switch off engine put back into gear. And yes a simple release handle means not gradual release of the parking brake. I have been driving DSs for 12 years and still it is a slow process. 

[danthecapriman]

Left foot pulls the parking brake on in Huggy, the Yanks have used this system for decades.  Although I normally just put him in Park, I do occasionally use the pedal.  Engage Drive with the engine running and the brake self-releases.  How's that for 46 years ago!

My Mercury is the same. Works well too. Can’t say I’ve got any complaints about them tbh.

[HMC]

Me neither, the issue arises when you add a manual gearbox rather than an auto into the mix.

[Conan]

I can imagine how much of a pain it would be. Even though ever since I've been driving a manual I have never had to use parking brake to set off even once due to living in a flat area.

 

I do wonder. There's some design in which you have to press the pedal down for it to come back up again. Is there any car with those that came with a manual? It would be a work of Satan.

 

I also just realised that auto hold bullshit is only because electronic handbrake wouldn't work for setting off in a manual.

[chaseracer]

I also just realised that auto hold bullshit is only because electronic handbrake wouldn't work for setting off in a manual.

 

Seems to work on SIS_racer's Cashcow.

[Pete-M]

I've got one on the Vito.

 

It's dead easy to use. Put right foot on service brake, left on 'hand' brake, pull release and raise left foot. No big furious thump from park brake. Move left foot to clutch and do the usual jiggle. Easy.

[SiC]

I can imagine how much of a pain it would be. Even though ever since I've been driving a manual I have never had to use parking brake to set off even once due to living in a flat area.

 

I do wonder. There's some design in which you have to press the pedal down for it to come back up again. Is there any car with those that came with a manual? It would be a work of Satan.

 

I also just realised that auto hold bullshit is only because electronic handbrake wouldn't work for setting off in a manual.

Every manual car I've driven with an electronic handbrake will release it as you get to bite point and start to pull off. Except a Honda HRV which needed bite point AND accelerator before it would. Took a couple of stalls before I figured that out and changed my pedal reflexes.

[Spiny Norman]

I just wouldn't buy a car with four pedals, period.
I did experience the foot operated parking brake in a Mercedes I had a while back but it was an auto so wasn't too irritating as I never used it while stopped in traffic, only when leaving the car. Probably why Mercs always sit at traffic lights with all the brake lights on.

re: Clunking on release. You can use your left foot on the pedal to ease it up rather than just letting the spring do its thing.

[beko1987]

My old xm had this and it was OK in an auto, but with the hills around here it is enough to make me think twice about a manual one...

 

Dad's ioniq has a foot pedal handbrake and he struggles to push it sometimes, my stepmum can't at all

[mercrocker]

All proper MBs should have these.   My current 190E does not and is inferior as a result.   Why do they fit these things? 

 

 

Probably so you can have this....

 

 

 

An armrest.... 

 

 

My W201 doesn't have one of those either.  Pah.  

 

Also you already have two less things to worry about in a Benz - depreciation and breakdown.   Therefore they figure you can handle another foot pedal.   

 

 

[MorrisItalSLX]

My only experience with a foot handbrake is the pain of having my shin impaled in a Mercedes 200TE on a test drive when I pulled the release handle. The seller was very sympathetic but also a bit irked by my blood on the carpet.

 

As it happens, I did not buy that Merc.

[vaughant]

Seems to work on SIS_racer's Cashcow.

My son's a class had this, worked brilliantly.

[vaughant]

I've got one on the Vito.

 

It's dead easy to use. Put right foot on service brake, left on 'hand' brake, pull release and raise left foot. No big furious thump from park brake. Move left foot to clutch and do the usual jiggle. Easy.

Yep same with me also on a Vito.

 

Took all of 3 attempts to get used to it.

However, I've somehow broken the plastic pull handle on it which makes a lot "trickier".

 

I barely use it though, many years of cars with crap handbrakes made me use the "fast foot" method.

 

Again no real issues.

 

Must say though agree with all of the above, Mercs should come with an auto box as standard, the change on my c220 CDI is instant, press a button on the stalk in traffic and your in park or tap it upwards to get neutral, easy.

 

If you hold the foot brake on for a few seconds it holds by itself as well.

 

I was so impressed with the pull select drive and pull off, handbrake releases automatically until I literally read above our friends in the USA have had this for 50 years!!!!

[meggersdog]

My Mercedes is a manual with a foot on hand release parking brake.Takes a few attempts to get used to but it's fairly flat in these villages so no hill starts. My other cars have pretty shit handbrakes so I leave them all in gear when parked anyway.

[Rovorsche]

I had a Chevy Van with a foot handbrake, did 3,800 miles in it and never worked out the foot operated brake.

There was every chance it didnt actually work though.

 

I sat in a nearly new 300C, noted the four pedals and lack of the big lever.

The salesman said the handbrake was a design feature of "Proven Mercedes mechanicals"

I made a comparison to a West African taxi having the same feature and didnt even start the thing up for the test drive.

 

The only EPB vehicle I have driven was a Vectra SRi that jammed the brake on every it was parked, it was rented and missing the hand book so I tried waggling the brake switch about and dabbing at the brakes but at no point would it release on command,

As it was rented I chose the bag of revs and clutch approach to commence motion.

Going forwards was not too dramatic, reversing off the drive would make the car stick its arse in the air and the rear wheels would drag about 18 inches before deciding a big BANG release was the better option, much revs were required even as a diesel.

The clutch was a bit whiffy after two weeks of rental but no fucks were given.

 

In short any smart arsed method beyond a lever is not an improvement.